Rational
by Edonil
Summary: Lloyd Asplund was objective, logical, and rational, and had no need for human contact.


Spoiler Warning: up to Episode 19 of Season 2 (R2).  
Disclaimer: The following characters belong to Sunrise et. al.

**Rational**

**A Code Geass FanFic**

Lloyd Asplund objectively, logically, and rationally threw a vase at the wall.

It had been a wedding present from his mother, a beautiful glass vase the colour of his fiancée's- ex-fiancée's- eyes. His dear mother had been so happy to hear that her son, the man notorious for seeing humans only as objects, was finally, "settling down with a nice young lady" (never mind that Lloyd told her his _actual_ reasons; his mother was certain it was love).

Seeing the shattered pieces of blue glass on the floor, Lloyd felt a faint (very faint) twinge of guilt. He supposed he should have simply sent the vase back to his mother, along with an apologetic note saying his wife-to-be had run off on him.

Run off on him. Annoyed, Lloyd threw his Great-Aunt Henrietta's would-be gift- a hideous orange decorative platter to put on the wall- after his mother's.

It wasn't that he was heart-broken, of course. Milly had certainly seemed like a nice enough girl, and Lloyd supposed she was pretty, but, contrary to his family's belief, he hadn't actually fallen in love with her. He didn't particularly like her, actually; it wasn't as if he'd spoken to her much. ("And therein lies the problem," a voice in his head whispered. "Maybe if you'd actually bothered to _notice_ her...")

No, it definitely wasn't heart-break. More annoyance, really, annoyance at missed opportunities.

He'd told Nina the truth; his heart had always been in pieces, imperfect. He'd always been more interested in science, in the natural world, than he was in people. Perhaps it was better that way; he created weapons, after all. Compared to poor Suzaku, so worried about helping people, and the unfortunate Nina, feeling the fresh shock of her first kill (because it was her who killed those people, really; Suzaku just pulled the trigger), Lloyd seemed much better off.

All the same, when Milly Ashford had waltzed into his laboratory to try to convince him to marry her, he had thought that perhaps he could regain that lost scrap of humanity that he was certain still remained somewhere in his psyche.

But no, she was gone, his chance was gone. No one would follow her; who would want to marry the man who could be considered responsible for more deaths than every knightmare pilot currently in existence _combined_?

A third wedding-gift hit the wall just as the nearby door opened. Cecile, his house-mate (maid?) winced at the sound of breaking glass.

"D-Doctor Lloyd? I heard breaking..." Lloyd scowled at her.

"Just getting rid of a few spare bits of glassware, my dear Cecile. They were cluttering up my house. Useless things."

"They, uh, could have been sent back, since..." Another vase (the shining gold of his ex-fiancée's hair, but who was looking?) barely missed her. "Should I come back in an hour or so? Perhaps with a dustpan and broom?"

"Yes, please." His voice sounded too terse. Shit. He'd spent so many years practicing his jovial, sing-song tone; why was it leaving him now?

Everything was leaving him. First his woman, now his demeanour; his Cecile would be next, no doubt.

(A small, niggling voice at the back of his mind said something about the most perfect woman in the world, an Indian beauty who'd actually managed to ensnare his heart for a short while, but he ignored it. The voice was clearly making things up. Like he'd told Nina, his heart had always been in pieces.)

An hour later, Cecile- dear, sweet Cecile, who looked after him in so many ways-, arrived to clean up the remains of the wedding gifts.

Surprisingly, Lloyd was still there. He even helped her clean up. Lloyd tried apologizing for making a mess, but Cecile told him not to mention it. (She understood him, even without him saying anything. Why couldn't that dratted _girl_ be the same?)

Cecile offered to make him dinner. Lloyd swallowed his dread (and his sense of taste) and agreed. She tried so hard; he should be a good sport and sample her cooking from time to time.

"Doctor Lloyd? Are you feeling well?" Lloyd smiled his widest smile.

"But of course, my dear Cecile! I was just having a bad day. Why do you ask?" He even struck a pose while speaking, though it felt strangely awkward.

Cecile laughed. "I'm glad to hear that, Doctor Lloyd." She then led him to the kitchen, to assist (or if all went horribly wrong, replace) her.

While he chopped vegetables, Lloyd reflected that he was much better off living with Cecile. She would cook and clean his house, just like a wife would, without cluttering up his mind with unnecessary emotions. Sure, there were _some_ things that could only be done with a wife, but Lloyd was managing just fine like this.

Just to prove to Cecile (he didn't need to prove anything to himself) that he couldn't care less about the wretch, he turned on the TV to watch her broadcast. He wasn't bitter, or jealous. He felt absolutely nothing, watching her smile and laugh and above all _act human_.

After all, Lloyd was objective, logical, and rational, and there was no need to be upset by this.


End file.
